16 Jun 2020
Nicola Sturgeon has been urged to finally coming good on her pledge that education is her top priority – by sorting out the crisis facing Scottish schools.
Since taking over in 2014, the First Minister has repeatedly said the education of youngsters would be her number one aim.
Now the Scottish Conservatives have demanded she delivers on that pledge when children, parents and teachers need it most.
Leader Jackson Carlaw said the shambolic handling of children’s return to school in August had exposed SNP failings.
He added that local authorities should be given all the resources they need to ensure face-to-face learning gets back up-and-running as quickly as possible.
Yesterday, Ms Sturgeon attempted to seize control of the education brief from her deputy and education secretary John Swinney, and spent much of the daily briefing contradicting what he had spent the weekend outlining.
Scottish Conservative leader Jackson Carlaw said:
“For several years Nicola Sturgeon has claimed that education is her number one priority, and to this point we haven’t seen any evidence of this actually being the case.
“Now she and her SNP government need to step up.
“Children have to get back to school in August – we simply cannot afford for their education to slip further behind.
“The rest of the UK is doing it, other countries in Europe are doing it – there is no reason why the Scottish Government has to be dragging its feet here.
“Billions have arrived in support from the UK Government, and of course the Scottish Government has its own budget which it can use.
“Councils need to be assured they can have the money to allow them to get the school gates open and the children back behind a desk.”
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